First Impressions
by Kaitaru Stark-Laufeyson
Summary: After three years of being together, Roronoa Zoro had never met his girlfriend's mother. So when Nico Robin finally takes him to meet her, Robin doesn't quite get the reaction she had expected.


**First Impressions. **

"Hey Robin," Zoro called out from the sofa in the couple's living room, his short green hair just visible from the top of it. "You know, after three years of us being together I still haven't met your mum yet."

From where she had just finished folding the laundry, Robin paused.

"Mum's always very busy." Robin replied at length, her voice calm as she walked up behind Zoro and ran a delicate hand through his hair. "She's an archaeologist, so she doesn't have time to see us. Her projects are big, and take up a lot of her time."

Zoro shrugged and nodded. "Ok then. But we should at least_ try _to see her at some point."

"Mmm." Robin hummed in daydream-like agreement. Dragging her mind back to the real world, she played with the three solid gold earrings that dangled from his left ear. "I have to go to the studio in a minute. Want to come?"

Considering it for a few seconds, Zoro stood up and stretched with a yawn. "Ehh, sure. I don't see why not. I could do with the fresh air."

Robin rolled her eyes and giggled. "You'll probably fall asleep in the car anyway."

"I will not." Zoro scoffed indignantly.

"You fall asleep everywhere." Robin countered.

"It's a talent." He snorted humorously as he put his boots on and handed her the car keys, following her outside and bundling into their black '67 Chevy Impala, Robin behind the wheel as she put the keys into ignition and backed out of their driveway.

After a few minutes of driving, they were headed out into a more rural part of the small town that they lived in. They didn't say much, both staring out of the window at the greenery around them, or focusing on the deserted road ahead of them.

As they drove, Robin happened to glance to her right to see a road that seemed oddly familiar. The reason struck her moments later, and she couldn't help the slight intake of breath as she realised it, increasing her grip ever so slightly on the wheel in front of her.

"What's wrong?" Zoro asked, his voice heralding a hint of concern as he looked at her.

Robin shook her head once as if to clear it, her raven hair flicking about her shoulders. "Nothing. It's just..." She trailed off, her slightly glazed over eyes fixed on the road almost unseeingly.

"Just what?" Zoro pressed.

"Just that my mum is down there." Robin admitted after a few moments.

Zoro's eyes sparked with interest and he raised an eyebrow. "Well then, let's go and see her. I bet she'd love to see you. I know you say she's always busy, but surely this once she could make an exception. I'd like to meet her."

Robin stiffened, her hands tightly clenching the steering wheel. "Fine." She whispered, turning the wheel until they had performed a complete U-turn on the road and were heading back in the direction they had just come from, taking the first left that they came to that led them down an old country road.

As the car pulled into an empty car park, Robin switched off the engine and silently took a deep breath as she followed Zoro's example by opening the door and climbing out. Her shoes made a slight crunching sound on the gravel as she locked the car and lead Zoro over to the patches of grass littered with abnormal stones sticking up out of the ground, and reaching towards the heavens. Some with crosses or weeping angels, but most just simple rounded headstones.

Zoro didn't say anything, and the only sound to be heard was the sound of his three gold earrings that jangled as he walked over the soft green grass a little way behind his girlfriend, whose arms were folded as though she was cold.

Coming to a stop a fair way from a particular headstone, Robin nodded to it. "There." She stated quietly, glancing at Zoro's face from where he stood next to her, his face impassive.

Robin could feel her throat slowly start to choke on the air inside it, due to the mixture of emotions that welled up inside her, fighting to keep them from affecting her outward appearance as her attention focused on the words engraved on the weather-beaten stone.

_ Olivia Nico_  
_ A mother, best friend, and amazing archaeologist _  
_ Rest in peace_

Robin watched him, waiting for his reaction. Expecting the 'what the hell?' or 'oh shit! I am so sorry' to come out at any moment. Instead, her eyes widened and she stared in shock as he calmly walked forwards and sat down with his legs crossed in front of her mothers headstone.

"Hey there. My name's Zoro. I'm Robin's boyfriend." He introduced himself, his face completely devoid of emotion. "You know, I was never worried about meeting new people but I know that since you're Robin's mother, I suppose I'd better make a good impression." At this, the corner of his lips quirked up into a smirk.

"I heard you're an archaeologist. Like mother like daughter, seeing as Robin is still trying to salvage your business. She thinks I don't know, but she sometimes leaves papers on the kitchen worktop that I pretend not to see. She's doing well with it too, and perhaps she might even go out and have a little peek on the last project you were working on before you departed. The Rio-Phoneglyh, right? Eh, I'm not good with names, so I'm hoping that's right."

Robin blinked a few times as she watched her boyfriend sit and talk to her mother's headstone as if he was actually talking to her, having a one sided conversation that lasted nearly an hour.

Inadvertently, Robin's eyes started to water as the emotions that she had kept locked up inside of her started to rise to the surface. When her vision started to blur, she blinked to clear it, feeling the wetness slowly travel down her cheek that alerted her to the fact that she was crying, as well as the fact that she couldn't stop shaking.

"You know, Olivia...I feel lucky to have found your daughter, because as I'm sure you already know, she's absolutely fantastic. She doesn't believe that though, no matter how much I tell her. She still does that thing where she gets all nervous and starts biting her bottom lip. I know she'll realise just how amazing she is one day, and I'm sure you knew she will too. I promise to protect and love her as the man a girl as beautiful as her deserves."

Zoro nodded to the headstone respectively after having stood up and brushed the grass off of him. "It was nice to finally meet you Olivia."

Turning back, he meandered back over to Robin and leaned in towards her, softly kissing her lips as she responded in kind before breaking the kiss and leaning her head on Zoro's shoulder for a minute or two.

"So. Did I make a good first impression?" Zoro asked, a knowing smile starting to spread across his face as he reached a hand up to her face and gently wiped her tears away.

Robin smiled back, unable to stop more tears from coursing down her cheeks as she nodded. "I think you definitely made a lasting impression."

* * *

_**Ok, I know there was slight OOC-ness there, but hey. I thought it was quite sweet. *Shrugs*  
**__**PLEASE REVIEW!**_** _PLEASE! THANK YOU! I LOVE YOU! COOKIES TO ALL.  
Kai XxxXxxX_**


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